


Fake It Til You Make It

by AlyKat



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Clint has a scrapbook full of fake marriage licenses, Fake Marriage, He fakes it till he makes it, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-26
Updated: 2015-06-26
Packaged: 2018-04-06 08:21:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4214814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlyKat/pseuds/AlyKat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clint keeps a scrapbook of all the fake marriage licenses he and Coulson have had to get through the years, as each state in the US allows same-sex marriages. They've always been for missions, but they've always been special to Clint. Now, on the day when the entire US is ruled to allow and recognize same-sex marriages, Clint wishes he could add another to his scrapbook.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fake It Til You Make It

**Author's Note:**

> Yaaaaay!! This fic was inspired by text messages shared between me and Ralkana about how Clint would want to have a scrapbook filled with marriage licenses from all 50 States. And it went from there. Enjoy!! 
> 
> This fic is not beta'd as it was originally posted as a Tumblr fic.

Clint and Phil hadn’t been a couple yet when the first few states had stepped up and declared they would allow and recognize same sex marriages. Still, Clint remembered being ridiculously pleased to hear the news and had burst into Coulson’s office to tell him all about it.

“Don’t you understand, Coulson?” He’d cried when he’d only gotten a small not-smile in response to his excitement. “In those few handful of states, I could legally get married to whoever I wanted to. Hell, I could get married to you in each and every one of those states!” 

Surprise had flashed so fast across Coulson’s face, Clint wasn’t sure it hadn’t just been a trick of the light. Of course, since that moment, Clint took it upon himself to sprawl across the couch in Phil’s office and any time a new state was added to the list, Clint would toss out a flippant, “Oh yeah, I can marry you in another state, now.”

Nick Fury had heard about this (of course he heard, he was Nick Fucking Fury. He heard about everything going on in his organization) and being the evil, sneaky shit that he is, and because he was sick of Coulson’s pining, decided to do something about it. That something turned out to be assigning Clint and Coulson to every undercover op he could think of in each state that allowed same-sex marriages. Their cover in each state? Newlyweds. Complete with official marriage licenses from each state (under their cover names, of course), and quick little photo shoots so they would have wedding photos to have on hand as necessary.

Nick thought it was funny. Phil thought he was a jackass. And Clint had started a scrapbook for the marriage licenses and “wedding” photos. So far, they were up to forty-one. Personally, Clint had enjoyed their Hawaiian “wedding” the most. 

Then it happened. Clint couldn’t believe that it did, but it really happened. A ruling came across the Supreme Court that ruled same-sex marriages legal in ALL 50 States. The scrapbook that had topped out at forty-one licenses and had been stuffed away in his closet once Coulson was killed by that dammed Asgardian bastard, Loki (it’d become to painful to look through it, after the Battle of New York. Just too damn painful) could finally be finished! Except, there was no more SHIELD to do undercover missions for. And Phil, well, even though Clint knew he was alive and well, it was obvious Phil didn’t want anything to do with Clint anymore. No matter how close they’d become through the years.

Still, it would have been nice to have been able to finish out his scrapbook. No matter if Coulson felt the same for him as he did for Coulson. 

Clint was sitting in the Tower, watching the coverage on TV, watching as rainbow flags went up everywhere and the hashtag #LoveWins popped up on every social media site there was, when he got a text from an unknown number.

[Need to see you] There was an address listed with it, somewhere in Texas. Clint didn’t understand.

[Who’s this? How’d you get my number?] He wrote back. It only took a minute for a response.

[Undercover op. Be at address in 5 hrs. Bring Natasha. Dress nice.]

Clint blinked once, then twice, before he leaped from the couch and ran for his room to change. While his heart kept hammering in his chest, his brain kept telling him not to get his hopes up. It probably wasn’t what he was thinking it was.

Natasha was already waiting at the Quinjet when Clint got there. Wearing a nice black dress, her shoes in hand. Clint wasn’t sure why Natasha was needed for the op, or why they were both instructed to dress nice, but whatever. He had to get to Texas. He’d worry about it later.

In the end, Natasha wouldn’t let Clint drive them to the address he’d been given. In fact, when they landed, they’d been met by two women Clint didn’t recognize at all, though the younger of the two was grinning from ear to ear and going on about how hot Clint was and how “DC” had done a good job. Whatever that meant. They’d been ushered into black, nondescript SUV, Natasha behind the wheel, the second woman in the passenger seat, and the younger one in the back with Clint.

No one would tell him where they were going, or what the op was, but Clint could hear Natasha and the other woman – May! That was who she was! Agent May! – talk in hushed tones about idiot men and how “they both” needed to grow up and actually speak to each other. Even if it meant feelings would be expressed.

When they got to the location, Clint felt his palms go sweaty and his throat turn into the Sahara. A courthouse. With one hell of a line out front.

“Come on. We’re running late.” May opened her door at the same time the younger woman shoved and prodded him out of the backseat.

“Here’s your cover. Everything you’d need.” Natasha handed him a wallet, inside was driver’s license for…himself? Wait, that didn’t make any sense. Clint looked through the wallet more. It was HIS wallet!

“Nat, this isn’t a cover. This is my real wallet. Where’s–”

“No time to explain. Get in there. Agents Hunter and Fitz will show you where you need to go.”

“Who the hell are Hunter and Fitz?!”

Hunter and Fitz, it turned out, were an Englishman and a Scottsman respectively, who were waiting just past security to drag Clint in and off to the front of a ridiculously long line. The same line that extended out the doors and down the front steps. Neither one seemed willing to give Clint answers, they just pushed him along until he was finally standing in front of the one man he thought he’d never see again.

Phil was there. Next to a judge. Dressed in one of his fucking gorgeous and expensive as hell suits, left arm in a sling – and Clint didn’t want to dwell on the fact he couldn’t see Phil’s left hand. WHY COULDN’T HE SEE PHIL’S LEFT HAND?!?! …okay, he dwelled on it a little bit. There was a sheet of paper and a pen in his right hand, though, and pink rising up on his cheeks that went all the way to the tips of his ears. 

For a minute, no one said anything. Clint and Phil just stared at each other. Finally, it was Phil who spoke first.

“Hi Clint…”

Clint couldn’t speak. Couldn’t breathe. He swallowed hard and nodded hello silently. Phil took two steps closer and Clint could see that Phil was nervous. Phil Coulson was NEVER nervous.

“There’s something I wanted to ask you.”

“Get down on your knee! It’s more romantic!” The younger girl – Clint thought he’d heard May call her Skye – called from somewhere behind him. And oh God did that ever make Clint’s heart stop cold.

The pink turned to a rosier shade as Phil rolled his lips together and looked down at the paper in his hand. Not just any paper. A license. A marriage license. For the state of Texas. TEXAS!

Clint wanted to protest, wanted to say it was okay, Phil didn’t have to do that. Didn’t have to do anything, but Phil was already lowering himself down to one knee and Clint was never so happy to have Natasha at his back to keep him from falling down when the air suddenly got too thin.

“Clint Barton?” Phil turned his grey eyes up to Clint, all the love and hope shining bright behind dark lashes. “Would you allow me the honor of finally marrying _you_?”

Clint wasn’t sure when the tears filled his eyes, or started trailing down his cheeks. Phil wanted to marry him. HIM! REAL HIM! Not a cover! Unable to say a word past the lump in his throat, Clint grabbed for the paper and pen still in Phil’s hand and practically threw himself at the nearest flat surface around. For the first time in years filling in his full, true information on a marriage license before turning to thrust it at the judge.

“Do it! Before he changes his mind and disappears on me again!” 

The room filled with laughter and Phil blushed all the harder as he stood up to take Clint’s hand in his. Fitz appeared at their side, holding two plain titanium rings in his hands, and a bright smile on his face. 

There wasn’t much that Clint really remembered about the epically small ceremony, except for the important stuff: “Do you, Clinton Francis, take Phillip John…” “Do you Phillip John, take Clinton Francis…” “By the powers vested in me by the Supreme Court of the United States, and the great State of Texas, I now pronounce you husbands for life. You may kis–”

Clint threw himself at Phil, his arms wrapping around his waist as he pressed himself in for a breathtaking kiss. He didn’t care who saw them! Clint got to marry Phil! Real and official!

Pulling back when it finally became hard to breathe, Clint rested his forehead against Phil’s and closed his eyes. It was hard to believe that it had actually happened, that he was standing here with Phil, officially as a married couple. After all the fake married couple undercover ops, he finally got the real thing.

Of course, he would let Phil know later that now that it was official in all 50 States, they needed to come up with just a few more cover names so they could finish out their collection of marriage licenses. Clint wanted the full 50 State set!

Oh, and a real and proper wedding back in New York whenever Phil got back that way. With all their friends present. Not just Phil’s team of misfits.


End file.
